The great quest of our time-to address planetary warming and arrest climate change-will be played out through this urbanising century. A new generation of technologies will make living smarter, vehicles more autonomous, and work more automated. Within this metropolitan century we also expect to see human population growth tail off. Europe will be at the vanguard of this change, around 90% urbanised. By the time this century is complete, the world’s population will be 80% urbanised. From roughly 1980 to 2080, humankind is on a great trek to the cities. The world has entered an age of urbanisation, a metropolitan century, that is already one third complete. In this essay series, we will reveal how Europe’s cities have emerged over the past fifty years, and what their prospects are. Europe’s cities win on many measures of liveability and resilience, and these advantages are increasingly relevant in a world challenged by climate change, instability, and economic transition. Though they lack the clout that comes with ten million-plus populations or the headquarters of the world’s largest firms, on important international agendas such as cultural production, public health, knowledge and education, and sustainability, the European metropolis leads. The findings, interpretations and conclusions are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Investment Bank.Įurope’s cities are global leaders. Read an overview of the cities we’ll examine in depth as our series unfolds. How the system of cities involved: Adaptation and investment in European cities.By Greg Clark, Tim Moonen, and Jake Nunley.

The making of global city regions